Targeting the Lonely: Nigerian-based Scammers

02/21/201909/21/2019 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ 1 Comment

pink computer — Cute image, sad stories! https://www.axios.com/scarlet-widow-anatomy-of-a-romance-scam-ring-25b6a993-8478-4e72-912e-d21e5ae4b9b4.html

I know it’s hard to believe that there are so many lonely men and women, especially seniors, who fall for on-line dating site scams and actually send money—millions of dollars annually—to people they think they are in love with, but have never met.
This story from Axios is about “Scarlet Widow” a Nigerian-headquartered fraud network,

Scarlet Widow: Anatomy of a romance-scam ring

A Nigeria-based romance-scam outfit, dubbed Scarlet Widow in a new report, has been bilking lonelyhearts of their savings since 2015.
Why it matters: In the abstract, people often dismiss email scams as a punchline they are somehow above. In truth, they are a billion-dollar crime paradigm preying on the gullible and savvy alike. And romance scams have particularly tragic dimensions.

Apparently the Nigerians are great actors in addition to being clever scammers.

The moniker “Nigerian scam” is more than a nickname. Agari’s research found the Scarlet Widow group, like 90% of email scams, actually does originate in Nigeria.

Go here for more.

But the romance scammers don’t just live in Nigeria.

Black Axe victim — Canadian victim of romance scammers connected to Nigerian Black Axe group. Story at The Globe and Mail https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/shadowy-black-axe-group-leaves-trail-of-tattered-lives/article27244946/

Here is a story by reporter Anna Marie Bolton about one such Nigerian scammer (affiliated with Black Axe) from Canada who had been living in Garland, Texas and was found guilty late last year of cheating older lonely women out of life savings.

Florida Jury Finds Nigerian ‘Axemen’ Guilty of Scamming Elderly Women for Millions

While all eyes are on Florida for the recount of the Senate election, a federal jury in Tampa has found Okechuwku “Desmond” Amadi, a Canadian who had been living in Garland, Texas guilty of conspiracy and money laundering. He was caught operating a complex fraud scheme from Garland, via Florida, Canada and Nigeria, that preyed on elderly and divorced women.
The announcement from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Middle District of Florida came Thursday, stating that Amadi faces 60 years in federal prison.
The feds nabbed Amadi in Sept. 2017 as he returned on a flight to JFK International Airport from Nigeria.

More here.

Be sure to keep an eye on granny! Or grandpa! Or some other lonely family member so that they don’t fall prey to scammers like these!

Tweet about Jussie Smollet Good for a Laugh

02/19/201909/21/2019 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ 7 Comments

I wasn’t planning to say anything yet about the Jussie Smollett attack story (surely you are following it) and the Nigerians involved until there was a final resolution to the investigation now many are labeling a hoax.

However, when reader Cathy sent me this tweet, I couldn’t resist posting it.
If Nigerians are famous for anything, it is for scams and frauds perpetrated on us—American citizens and taxpayers.
If you don’t know that yet, keep following Frauds and Crooks because I have many stories about Nigerian fraudsters in my queue ripe for posting.
Too funny!

Screenshot (886) — JackPosobiec at twitter https://twitter.com/JackPosobiec

And, by the way, I wonder if we will ever find out how the Nigerians came to be living in the US in the first place. Are they here legally or illegally?

Looking for something to do? If you aren’t already involved using social media, get involved. As much as it is maddening sometimes, it is the only way we can get past the Leftwing media’s spin on the news. And, if you have a good sense of humor you will go far!

Tennessee: Doctor/Pastor Indicted in Massive Drug Sting at Pain Clinic

02/17/201909/21/2019 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ 1 Comment

Although the 45-count indictment occurred in December, good for The Tennessean to now publish this substantial story about a Nigerian ‘new American’ alleged crook.
Editor: I should subtitle posts like this: ‘when new Americans kill us!’
Here is the news (hat tip: Tomarose),

Tennessee pain clinic handed out opioids at ‘cattle calls’, says undercover federal agent

It was October 2017 when the undercover federal agent slipped into the Clarksville pain clinic for the third time, hiding in plain sight among dozens of patients crowded into a small waiting room.
A receptionist called out 20 names, then the agent lined up with other patients.
They were each handed a prescription slip. Then they waited. A few hours later, the receptionist called their names again, collected their money and handed all of them drugs.
The undercover agent paid $377. He left with 84 Oxycodone tablets, an anti-inflammation drug and a muscle relaxant. Nobody bothered to examine him. He never saw a doctor.
This is how federal prosecutors say prescriptions were handled at the clinic of Samson Orusa, a Middle Tennessee doctor and pastor who allegedly wrote 66,353 prescriptions for addictive drugs, including opioids, from 2014 to 2017.
Orusa was indicted on charges of drug trafficking and healthcare fraud last year, and his attorney has vowed to fight the allegations in court.

Orusa, 56, has for about 20 years run a medical practice in Clarksville [50 miles Northwest of Nashville] and been pastor at God’s Sanctuary Church International, which he runs with his wife, Abigail, who uses the church title of “prophetess.” Orusa attended medical school at the University of Benin in Nigeria and performed his residency at Columbia University in New York, according to a state licensing database.

Federal court records, recently obtained by The Tennessean, describe the investigation in more detail than ever before, revealing undercover agents visited Orusa’s clinic five times in 2017.
Investigators also logged when Orusa came and went each day and filmed the clinic parking lot for three months.
And what they saw was alarming, court document state. Patients at Orusa’s clinic were rarely examined by the doctor and often prescribed opioids in large groups through what authorities refer to as “cattle calls.”
[….]
The newly obtained court documents also detail how Orusa allegedly profited from mass prescribing, collecting more than $1 million in cash during a six-month span in 2017. Prosecutors are currently trying to seize the contents of six personal bank accounts to which they say Orusa funneled more than $920,000 in illegal profits.
Most of that money came from drug sales, court documents state, but Orusa is also accused of defrauding the government by billing Medicare or Medicaid for examinations that he couldn’t possibly have done.

More here.
Some of the stories about Orusa allege that patients died of drug overdoses while under his ‘care.’

I can assure you that this type of practice is going on near you. Watch for it! If you have a friend or family member going to a pain clinic (especially one run by a foreign doctor), keep an eye on them and the clinic and don’t hesitate to turn in the doctor/clinic if you see something fishy.

Nigerian Fraudster Indicted for Stealing Hurricane Harvey Disaster Relief Funds

01/14/201909/21/2019 ~ Ann Corcoran ~ 1 Comment

The news of Olanrewaju A. Beyioku’s arrest in November was reported in local news and in one large news outlet—the Chicago Tribune. The story in the suburbs section of the Tribune does not mention the ‘new American’ status of the “Indiana man” the feds indicted in December.
However, the Nigerians are not so shy about identifying him as Nigerian. See LailasNews.com and don’t miss the comments where Nigerians say he brings shame to Nigeria.

nigerian defrauds red cross — Olanrewaju A. Beyioku

You have to hand it to them, Nigerians are clever scammers.
I’m posting a good bit of the Dept. of Justice press release from December 20th (hat tip: Diana) so you can see how the 38-year-old Beyioku was one of many who together scammed the American Red Cross out of more than a million dollars intended for Hurricane Harvey victims.
From the Department of Justice, Northern District of Indiana,

HAMMOND- Olanrewajua A. Beyioku, 38, of Gary, Indiana, was charged in an indictment with wire fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Kirsch.
U.S. Attorney Kirsch said, “At a time when individuals were going through some of the worst times in their lives, Mr. Beyioku seized the opportunity to enrich himself with hurricane relief funds meant for those who lost homes and businesses. My Office and our law enforcement partners will continue to investigate those who defraud the government for personal gain.”
The Indictment alleges that, in September and October 2017, Beyioku, a.k.a. “Papa Smith Morgan,” working in conjunction with others, known and unknown to the United States Attorney, devised a scheme to defraud the American Red Cross (“Red Cross”) by obtaining reference codes intended for nine different households directly impacted by Hurricane Harvey, and by using those codes to obtain $3,600 in hurricane relief funds.
[….]
One type of federal disaster relief was a one-time cash payment of $400 through the Red Cross. The Red Cross established a link on their website where hurricane victims could apply for the cash assistance. Hurricane victims used their email addresses to apply. They entered personally identifiable information, including their address. If the address fell within a designated disaster area, The Red Cross forwarded the application electronically to an entity referred to herein as “Company A.”
Company A vetted the information, and electronically forwarded it to “Company B.” Company B then created an eleven-digit alphanumeric code. The code was then sent to the applicant with instructions to redeem the code at a Wal-Mart Money Center or Customer Service Desk.
In early September 2017, The Red Cross received reports of ineligible people redeeming multiple reference codes at various Wal-Mart stores across the United States. The Red Cross reported this to the National Center for Disaster Fraud (“NCDF”). With assistance from Wal-Mart Global Security Investigators, The Red Cross identified over 3,300 instances of fraudulently obtained reference codes. The loss to The Red Cross is more than 1.3 million dollars.

See the remainder of the press release by clicking here. The feds don’t identify him as Nigerian either.
question mark

So why didn’t this story make the national news? Because it is not a warm and fuzzy story about New Americans! And, by the way, which LEGAL immigration program did Beyioku use to get in here in the first place?